Every graduate of a farrier school dreams of riding along with a journeyman farrier when they get back home. (I'll call them journeyman farriers in deference to their experience and not the AFA Certified Journeyman status) The new farrier is looking for a mentor or someone willing to show them the ropes. Some are lucky enough to find farriers to ride with but most go through the grueling task of starting a business by themselves.
If you are going to ask to ride in someone's truck then you should know some basic rules and expectations.
Don't get discouraged if things do not work out with the first couple of contacts or if the local association does not have anyone interested in the new farrier. There are thousands of very qualified farriers that for one reason or another do not belong to associations, but they are feeding their families and making a good living shoeing horses.
If you call a Journeyman and ask to ride along don't expect to get paid. If a journeyman calls you and asks for your help then discuss compensation. In California journeymen pay apprentices $6 - $10 per horse or a specific amount per day, but only after they have established themselves with the journeyman. Don't count on this just out of school.
Do not expect a journeyman to shoe an extra horse or two a day just so you can get paid. You paid the farrier school for what they taught you; plan to 'pay' the journeyman with hard work.
Beware of the attitude that "You need to suffer to prove your commitment and worth". Some journeymen just want cheap labor and don't really care about teaching or the future of our profession. An offer of $50 per week for a 12 hour day, 6 days a week, with a cot in the shop; just to say you worked at the foot of a 'Master' is barbaric. This should be a win/win situation; not Dark Ages indentured servitude.
Do not be bullied into mowing lawns, painting houses, weeding gardens or fixing fences just to hang around a journeyman. If the work is not specifically related to this profession, don't do it!
There should be an evaluation that both the journeyman and the ride along conduct soon after riding together.
From the journeyman's perspective:
From the new farriers perspective:
Ride alongs can be beneficial for both the journeyman and the new farrier as long as the lines of communications are kept open.
Remember that a journeyman who wants an employee must comply with state and federal law, which usually means workman compensation, unemployment insurance, social security taxes and other payroll withholdings. Before anyone gets into that mess the new farrier had better demonstrate his/her worth.
Trend toward multi-farrier practice
The farrier profession is entering an era where it is becoming financially feasible for journeyman farriers to bring on apprentices, eventually leading to a multi-farrier business.
When you are in your twenties or thirties having someone around may indeed slow you down. But I can tell you that as you age you begin to appreciate someone who can pull and finish or trim that old cranky broodmare.
Many ride alongs turn into informal or formal apprenticeships that are beneficial to both the new farrier and the journeyman as long as both know the rules and their roles.